PNNL

Abstract

Over the past few decades, advances in biology and electronics have resulted in an enormous increase in the screening rate of new compounds and in the capacity to synthesize vast numbers of new compounds. The understanding of disease has greatly improved. At the same time, the number of targets (or diseases) for the silver bullets has also increased. Yet, the belief that we have to screen enormous numbers of compounds to find the next new drug continues. Today, disease is understood to be a complex interaction of many systems. This ought to cause us to change our paradigm, but it has not. The fundamental reason for the apparent failure of our drug discovery and development research is that we are operating under the constraints of an out-of-date paradigm. The silver-bullet paradigm has always been a myth. Now is the time to debunk the myth and change the paradigm. Our other option is to continue on as we are and accept that the United States will become obsolete on the playing field of drug discovery.